Refrigerator.



A. J. MCARTHUR.

REFRIGERATOR.

APyucAnoN FILED nec.11.1915.

l ,285,277. Patented N ov. 19, 1918.

/ by any.

UNITED sTA'rEs PATENT ermee.

ANDREW J. MCARTHUR, OF ATLANTA, GEORGIA, ASSIGNOR TO UNION FIBRECOMPANY, OF WINONA, MINNESOTA, A CORPORATION OF MINNESOTA.

REFRIGERATOB.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 19, 1918.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW J. MCAR- "mannT a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Atlanta, in the county of Fulton and State ofGeorgia, have invented new and useful Improvements in Refrigerators, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in refrigerators, and its object isto promote efliciency and sanitation in such devices.

More particularly, it is my object to provide in a refrigerator, acylindrical housing having a central vertical coldair conduit adapted tosupport individually revoluble provision shelves and to efficientlydiffuse cold air through the provision chamber. f

A further object is to provide in a refrigerator of this kind, means forconveniently removing the shelves and other fixtures from the housingfor the purpose of cleaning the same.

Novel structural details and combinations of parts will be hereinafterdescribed and pointed out in my claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a central vertical sectionalview of al refrigerator-embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a transverseSectional view taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is a detailplan view of one of the drain pipe keepers.

Referring to the drawings, I have used the reference letter A toindicate the cylindrical walls, B the kbottom and C the cover, whichforma housing inclosing a refrigerating compartment D. Said body, bottom andcover each comprise inner and outer sheet metal walls 10' and 11 havingsuitable insulating material 12 between them. The bottom B is integralwith the body A and rests on a suitable base 13. The cover C is formedwith an annular depending flange 14 thereon which telescopes over theupper end of said body and a hinged section of said cover provides adoor 15 which may be lifted to permit access to the ice chamber withoutremoving the cover C. A doorway 16 in the body A is fitted withanvinsulated door frame 17 and an insulated door 18 is hinged on saidframe, to close said doorway. An ice pan 19 shaped like a truncated conehas an annular supporting flange 20 at the rim thereof which rests uponthe upper edge of the body A. Said pan has a double walled bottom 2lwith insulating material 22 therein. A perforated false bottom 23 withinthe ice pan is adapted to support the ice and a. plurality of holes 24are formed near the bottom of the pan to discharge water therefrom. Anannular gutter 25, ysurrounding the lower edge of the ice'pan, catchesthe drip issuingfrom said holes 24. and empties into a drain tube 26. Aseries of air inlet openings 27 is formed in the upper margin of the icepanl9 and a thimble 28 passes centrally through the bottom of said panand connects with the hereinafter-described cold air conduit. The upperend of this thimble projects high enough above said bottom to excludewater therefrom and the lower end of said thimble depends considerablybeneath the pan. The

central pipe E, forming the cold air conduit and shelf support, receivesthe lowerV end of the thimble 28 and conveys cold air from the ice panto the bottom of the refrigerator. This pipe E has a plurality ofsections 29, 30 and 31, each section being larger in diameter than theone above and smaller in diameter than the one below so that at theunions of said sections horizontal annular shoulders or rests 32 and A33are formed. The lowest section 31 of the conduit E is provided with aseries of outlet openings 34 through which cold air is dischargedradially at the bottom of the refrigerating compartment.` Circularsupporting trays or shelves l35 and 36 are freely mounted upon the rests32 and 33 of the central pipe E and are thus adapted to be severallyturned to present any desired article upon themat the doorway 1G of therefrigerator; tilting of the shelves being prevented by the sleeves 37and 38 attached to the shelves and encircling the conduit E. Theseshelves 35 and 86 are perforated to permit the circulation of airtherethrough. The sections29 and 80 of the conduit E are respectivelyformed with eX- ternalcircumferential ribs 39 and 41 and the sleeves 37and 38 surrounding said sections are respectively formed with internalcircumferential ribs 40 and 42. These ribs provide eiiicient bearingsbetween said conduit and sleeves. The lower side of the shelf 3b has anannular bearing rib d3 which turns upon the shoulder ,33 and saidshoulder has a similar rib del upon which said shelf rests. i drain tubee5 is centrally mounted within the cold air pipe E by means ofdetachable keepers e6. This drain tube a5 receives water from the tube26 above described and delivers the saine to a third tube #t6 in thebottom B of the refrigerator which leads to a water trap e? beneath saidbottom.

ln use, provisions are placedL upon the shelves and each article iseasily accessible by turning the particular shelf upon which it rests,to bring said article adjacent to the doorway i6 of the refrigerator.'lhe cover C- may be removed from the body A to permit the filling ofthe pan 19 with ice or the door l5 in said cover may be opened. Airwithin the ice pan is cooled and descends through the conduit E to thebottom of the refrigerator, whence it passes radially through the outletopenings 34- in the pipe E and is diffused throughout the refrigeratingcompartment, thence upward through the inlet openings 27 into said icepan, thus completing the circuit through the refrigerator. rlhiscirculation of air is rapid and thorough and detrimental eddies andbaclr currents, common in refrigerating compartments of ordinaryrefrigerators, are eliminated. The drip from the openings 2i in the icepan and the water of condensation forming upon the outer wall thereof iscollected in the gutter and discharged through the drain tubes 25, l5and 4:6 into the water trap l? from which said water escapes through thedischarge pipe e8.

ln cleaning the refrigerator, the cover C is removed therefrom, afterwhich the ice pan 19, cold air pipe l@ and shelves 35 and e6 may bewithdrawn from the refrigerating compartment. Said shelves are easilyremovable from the pipe E and so also is the drain tubo l5 from withinsaid cold air pipe. ln reassembling the parts, the shelves 235 and 36are replaced upon the pipe E in the order named. The drain tube d5 isinserted in the conduit which is then easily returned to centralposition within the retrigerating compartment by passing the lower endthereof over the annular rib t9 formed in the inner wall l0 of thebottom l. In this position of the conduit, the lower end of the draintube e5 opens into the mouth Olof the tube e8. The ice pan 19 is nextplaced within the refrigerator, the lower end of the thimble 28 fittingwithin the upper end of the conduit E and the lower end of the draintube 26 opening into the mouth 51 of the rain tube 45. The cover C isfinally replaced upon the body flaming described my invention, whatcla-im as ne f' and desire to protect by liet ters atent, is:

l. ln a refrigerator, an insulated cylindrical housing, comprising ahollow cylindrical body having a bottom integral therewith and aremovable cover, an ice pan shaped like a truncated cone and suppliedwith a supporting flange at the rim thereof adapted to rest upon theupper edge of said body, said pan having a series of air inlet openingsin its upper margin, and a cold air thimble passing centrally throughthe bottoni of said icepan, a removable pipe centrally arranged withinthe housing and forming a cold air conduit and shelf support, saidconduit communicating at its upper end with said thimble and formed atits lower end with outlet openings, a plurality of shelves revolublymounted on said pipe, a gutter at the lower edge of the ice pan, a draintube leading from said gutter to a point below the center of the icepan, a tube centrally arranged within the conduit to receive the dripfrom said lirst tube and a third drain tube centrally arranged in thebottom of the refrigerator to catch the drip from said second draintube.

2. in a refrigerator, an insulated cylindrical housing. an ice pan inthe upper end of said housing having an air inlet opening at the top anda central outlet opening in the bottom thereof, a central upright pipein said housing having horizontal shoulders thereon, said pipe forming acold air conduit to receive air from said opening in said ice pan anddischarge it at the bottom of the housing, shelves revolubly supportedon said shoulders, a sleeve secured to each shelf and surrounding saidpipe, and ribs on said pipe and sleeves forming bearings therefor.

3. ln a. refrigerator, an insulated cylindrical housing, an ice pan inthe upper end of said housing having an air inlet opening at the top anda central outlet opening in the bottom thereof, a central upright pipein said housing having a horizontal shoulder thereon, said pipe forminga cold `air conduit to receive air from said opening in said ice paniand discharge it at the bottom of the housing, a shelf revolublysupported on the shoulder of said pipe, a sleeve secured to said shelfand surrounding said pipe, an external circumferential rib on the pipeand an internal circumferential rib on said sleeve, said ribs formingbearings between said pipe and sleeve. Y

l. ln a refrigerator, an insulated cylindrical housing, an ice pan inthe upper end of said housing having air inlet openings at its top and acentral thimble in the bottom thereof, a central vertical pipe in saidhousing having ay horizontal shoulder thereon, said pipe forming a coldair conduit to receive air from said thimble in said ice pan anddischarge it at the bottom of the housand an annular rib on saidshoulder, said ing, a, shelf revolubly supported on the ribs formingbearings between said pipe and shoulder of said pipe, a sleeve securedto sleeve and between said shoulder and shelf. 10 said shelf andsurrounding seid pipe, an eX- Whereof, I have hereunto subscribed mytermal circumferential rib on said pipe, an name to this speccetion.

internal circumferential rib on said sleeve,

an annular rib on.' the bottom of said shelf ANDREW J.v MoARTI-IUR.

Copies of this patent may be vobtained for :live cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C.

